Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $861,000 Stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management decreased its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 10,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 212 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in MetLife were worth $861,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.3% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 9,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $781,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.0% in the third quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 12,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,015,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 0.8% in the third quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 16,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,375,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 3.2% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 4,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 2.0% in the third quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 6,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $576,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $85.73 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $83.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.22. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.61 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The company has a market cap of $59.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.28, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.54%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 43.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MET shares. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler upped their target price on MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen upped their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.46.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc, a financial services company, provides insurance, annuities, employee benefits, and asset management services worldwide. It operates through six segments: Retirement and Income Solutions; Group Benefits; Asia; Latin America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and MetLife Holdings. The company offers life, dental, group short-and long-term disability, individual disability, pet insurance, accidental death and dismemberment, vision, and accident and health coverages, as well as prepaid legal plans; administrative services-only arrangements to employers; and general and separate account, and synthetic guaranteed interest contracts, as well as private floating rate funding agreements.